Here we are on the 1st of November, we have a covering of snow on the mountains and the new season is only weeks away. As you know we start the season with a training camp in Mammoth from December 1st to 4th followed by the season opener, two GS races on Dec 5th and 6th. To help kick the season off we have decided to hold a party on Friday evening at the Mammoth Brewing Company at 18 Lake Mary Road.

The U.S. Ski Team donates race suits to the Far West Masters Scholarship Program. These are new suits that were never used by the team and retail for about $1,700. The program raises money by selling them for $500 to Masters racers and to athletes who are not in the scholarship program. Sponsored scholarship athletes pay $100, so they have “a little ski in the game.”

Mammoth Mountain is hosting the camp Tuesday through Friday, December 1–4, 2026, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. each day. All four days focus on GS training.

Immediately following the camp is the Masters Opener, the annual kickoff for Far West Masters Racing, with two GS races at Mammoth on December 5–6.

Dear Far West Masters Association,

First and foremost, thank you again for your tremendous support over the years, and especially for the college grant. It truly means a great deal to me. I recently completed my first year at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, along with my first season ski racing out East (and I survived the winter!).

You may wonder why I am writing the update rather than Rees. As some of you may know Rees had an unexpected medical setback shortly after the end of last season, but he is making good progress now. As a result of this Rees decided to step down from his role as Division Chair of Far West Masters. We held a special board meeting in July where Rees nominated me as his interim successor as Division Chair and the board voted to confirm my appointment. Please join us in thanking Rees for his many contributions to Far West Masters as Division Chair and in so many other ways over the years. Rees will continue on the board as immediate past Division Chair and Ray Tulloch will step down from that role as Rees succeeds him. A big thanks to Ray for his many contributions also. I would like to thank Rees and the rest of the board for their confidence in me to succeed Rees. According to the bylaws the role of Division Chair will be up for election by a vote of all members in March next year.

As we enter the "meaty" portion of the Far West Masters ski season, so enters Mother Nature as well. We are grateful for the impending snow, but timing is everything as is said.

The 2026 U.S. Ski & Snowboard Alpine Masters National Championships will be held March 22–28, 2026, at Mammoth Mountain, CA — right here in the Far West division. This is a full week of racing, socializing, and celebrating everything that makes Masters racing great.

For the full event schedule, news, and updates, visit the [U.S. Ski & Snowboard Masters events page](https://www.usskiandsnowboard.org/masters/masters-events-schedules#NAT). A more detailed schedule will be released closer to the event. Once the event has started, refer to nightly racer emails and WhatsApp updates for the latest schedule details.

Register: [AdminSkiRacing](https://masters.adminskiracing.com/2026nationals)

Late fee deadline: Sunday, March 8, 2026 — registrations after that date are subject to a $20 late fee per race.

Far West Masters is a volunteer-run organization, and every year we rely on members who are willing to step up and help keep things running. Board elections take place at our annual membership meeting, and nominations are now open.

All current officers are willing to continue serving, but per our bylaws, several Vice Chair positions are open for nomination if you or someone you know is interested in running. In particular, we need a Vice Chair of Membership, as Mary Feddis is stepping down.

If you've been racing Masters for a while, you're probably used to a pretty relaxed approach to course inspection—head up the lift, drop in when you're ready, maybe take a second look if time allows. This season, that may look a little different at some of our race venues.

What's Changing: One-Look Inspections with Timed Entry Windows

It depends on the discipline—and whether the next racer is on your heels.

We've all been there. You're in the middle of a run, you miss a gate, and in that split second you have to decide: do I hike back, or is my run over? The answer depends on what event you're racing.

Important: Hiking back to a missed gate in slalom is a U.S. Ski & Snowboard rule only. Under FIS (international) rules, hiking is not permitted in any event.

Far West Masters has updated the titles of its board members to align with the organization's official bylaws. The changes bring consistency between the titles used on the website and in communications and the roles as defined in FWM's governing documents.

The most notable change is that the President title has been updated to Chairman, and most board members who previously held descriptive role titles now carry the designation of Vice Chair with their area of responsibility. For example, the Membership role is now Vice Chair of Membership, Communications is now Vice Chair of Communications, and so on.

by Bill Schenker

A wise old man once said you can’t have a bad day of Super G. You might go slow, you might go fast, but no matter what, you’re going to have fun!

Two days and four Super Gs at Mammoth Mountain last Friday and Saturday proved that to be true yet again.  

by Rees Palermo

I keep asking, why do we do this sport of Alpine ski racing, especially into our later years of life?

Well, there’s nothing quite like it.

by Jonathan Garey-Sage

We all came together for the first race of the 25/26 season at Sugar Bowl. The weather was perfect for early January with clear blue skies and temps warming to the mid 30’s.

We just launched a Member Spotlight survey, and we’d love your help.

The goal is simple: help future members see who Far West Masters really is—the people, the stories, and the community that make racing with us so special. Your responses may be featured on our website or social media to help curious skiers feel more confident about jumping in.

Thank you to racers J. C. Fat and Linda Crowell for submitting photos from the Sugar Bowl race weekend January 10-11, 2026. We’ve also got a great POV video taken with Meta glasses which was posted to Instagram by Mike Shklovski.

Thank you to everyone who completed the survey earlier this year and provided all of the great recruiting ideas, we are working behind the scenes to build out some of them and are already starting to see some benefit. Recruiting and marketing is a lot of work, and our members are our best resource to maximize our outreach. What can you do to help in recruiting efforts?

Every one of us remembers our first Masters race, the mix of excitement and nerves, wondering if we'd fit in, hoping we wouldn't embarrass ourselves. Now that we have some new members joining us this season, let's make sure their first experience is as welcoming as ours was (or better!).

Here are some simple ways you can help new racers feel like part of the FWM family from day one.

Not every race day looks the same. Some days you’re standing around for hours in midwinter cold. Others you’re rotating laps, coaching, or moving constantly. The Far West Masters SYNC Performance collection is intentionally broad so you can match the right category of gear to how you actually ski.

Use this guide to compare options by category and quickly zero in on what fits your needs.